Boris Johnson tells voters to ‘forget about the government’
The Tory mayor of the West Midlands is sending voters an endorsement from Boris Johnson which urges people to “forget about the government”, Sky News can reveal.
Andy Street’s campaign website makes no mention of Rishi Sunak on its homepage and is coloured in green rather than Conservative blue, suggesting the mayor is trying to run on his credentials as an independent campaigner rather than under the unpopular Tory brand.
Other campaign literature – including the front page of a campaign “newspaper” seen by Sky News – makes no mention of the Conservative leader.
Boris Johnson and Andy Street during a Conservative party local election visit in 2021. Pic: Reuters
However, the campaign team for Mr Street, whose battle for re-election is on a knife edge against Labour, is sending out literature with pictures of him and the former prime minister Mr Johnson, which openly admits problems with the Conservatives’ reputation.
Mr Johnson writes in his signed letter to voters: “You might not like everything the Conservatives have done.”
He adds: “Forget about government. Forget about Westminster. The election is about the next four years in the West Midlands – and who do you want in charge.”
The letter – topped with a picture of Mr Johnson and Mr Street – has been received by voters as recently as Tuesday.
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Letter from Boris Johnson endorsing Andy Street
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A spokesman for Mr Johnson confirmed the veracity of the letter and said he was pleased to write it.
At the weekend, Mr Street gave an interview to The Sunday Times about the moments he has fallen out with Mr Sunak.
The West Midlands mayoral race and the Tees Valley mayoral race both are pivotal on Thursday’s election to the survival of Mr Sunak, but both Tory candidates hoping to cling on are putting distance between themselves and the PM.
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Andy Street, the mayor of West Midlands. Pic: Reuters
A Labour source said: “Rishi Sunak’s predecessor telling voters to forget about the government is a damning verdict on the prime minister’s leadership.
“Andy Street has distanced himself from Rishi Sunak but seems very happy to put Boris Johnson’s name up in lights.
“Rishi Sunak is such a drag that his own candidates clearly feel they need to dump him to win.”
The other candidates in the West Midlands are:
• Siobhan Harper-Nunes, Greens;
• Richard Parker, Labour;
• Sunny Virk, Lib Dems;
• Elaine Ruth Williams, Reform;
• Akhmed Yakoob, independent
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Politics
Heidi Alexander says ‘fairness’ will be government’s ‘guiding principle’ when it comes to taxes at next budget
Another hint that tax rises are coming in this autumn’s budget has been given by a senior minister.
Speaking to Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander was asked if Sir Keir Starmer and the rest of the cabinet had discussed hiking taxes in the wake of the government’s failed welfare reforms, which were shot down by their own MPs.
Trevor Phillips asked specifically if tax rises were discussed among the cabinet last week – including on an away day on Friday.
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Tax increases were not discussed “directly”, Ms Alexander said, but ministers were “cognisant” of the challenges facing them.
Asked what this means, Ms Alexander added: “I think your viewers would be surprised if we didn’t recognise that at the budget, the chancellor will need to look at the OBR forecast that is given to her and will make decisions in line with the fiscal rules that she has set out.
“We made a commitment in our manifesto not to be putting up taxes on people on modest incomes, working people. We have stuck to that.”
Ms Alexander said she wouldn’t comment directly on taxes and the budget at this point, adding: “So, the chancellor will set her budget. I’m not going to sit in a TV studio today and speculate on what the contents of that budget might be.
“When it comes to taxation, fairness is going to be our guiding principle.”
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Afterwards, shadow home secretary Chris Philp told Phillips: “That sounds to me like a barely disguised reference to tax rises coming in the autumn.”
He then went on to repeat the Conservative attack lines that Labour are “crashing the economy”.
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Chris Philp also criticsed the government’s migration deal with France
Mr Philp then attacked the prime minister as “weak” for being unable to get his welfare reforms through the Commons.
Discussions about potential tax rises have come to the fore after the government had to gut its welfare reforms.
Sir Keir had wanted to change Personal Independence Payments (PIP), but a large Labour rebellion forced him to axe the changes.
With the savings from these proposed changes – around £5bn – already worked into the government’s sums, they will now need to find the money somewhere else.
The general belief is that this will take the form of tax rises, rather than spending cuts, with more money needed for military spending commitments, as well as other areas of priority for the government, such as the NHS.
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